How to Budget for Trips: When to Book and How to Avoid Hidden Fees
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How can you budget for travel effectively?
Yes, it was so fun. If you are planning any travel this year and you're putting together a travel budget, we've got tips for you. Welcome to Smart Travel, a deep dive into the tips, tools, and tactics to maximize your travel dollars. I'm Sally French. And I'm Megan Coyle. And we are the Travel Nerds, ready to help you plan your next big trip. Today, we're talking about how we budget for trips.
But first, the news.
And just a heads up, in this episode, we'll talk about a few credit card companies that are nerd wallet partners, but that doesn't influence how we discuss them. All right, let's dive in.
What are the latest trends in spring break travel?
Okay, so I know you and I got to spend the weekend in sunny Southern California, but many people are facing extremely cold temperatures out there in what feels like this never ending winter. But I am still not stopping thinking about spring break. AAA sent me over some interesting booking data that's made it pretty clear if you are going away on spring break this year, you should pad your budget. The big thing with spring break travel is airfares. And in fact, round trip airfares to popular domestic cities are averaging 7% more than last year. Domestic hotels are up 8% more than last year.
Well, then I'm glad our main segment today is all about budgeting, at least.
Look at us on top of it.
They also gave you some data on the top 10 destinations where people are going for spring break. Where are they going, Sally?
Okay, I'll give you this list rapid fire. We have Orlando, Fort Lauderdale, Atlanta, Miami, New York, Honolulu, Anaheim, where we just were, Tampa, another Florida in there, and Chicago, and finally, Charlotte.
Lots of great Florida representation on there and a little SoCal. Love it.
of lots of Disneyland trips for more people than just us on the horizon. Also, we have some interesting cruise data from AAA. According to AAA's cruise forecast projections, a record 19 million Americans are going on ocean cruises this year. That's the third year in a row that cruise passenger volume has hit a new record.
That's not surprising to me at all. Ever since the pandemic ended, cruises have been super, super popular.
And actually, I am going to check out a couple cruises for myself this spring break. Both MSC and Norwegian Cruise Line have new ships debuting this spring. So I will be there checking them out.
How do new airport lounges enhance travel experiences?
Awesome. You'll have to report back. Speaking of checking out new things in travel, last week I went to the new Capital One Lounge opening at the Las Vegas airport. That's right. You also flew to Las Vegas. How was it? It was so great. Vegas is such a popular destination for both vacationers and business travelers. So it was really smart to put a lounge there where people can sort of recharge after a week or weekend of revelry or work. That's also tiring. And Capital One Venture X cardholders get unlimited access for themselves and two guests to these Capital One lounges.
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Chapters
7 chapters
1
How can you budget for travel effectively?
0:56–1:32
2
What are the latest trends in spring break travel?
1:32–3:07
3
How do new airport lounges enhance travel experiences?
3:07–6:02
4
What changes are coming to Uber for international travelers?
6:02–7:39
5
How do you set and manage a travel budget?
7:39–13:04
6
When is the best time to book flights?
13:04–16:13
7
How can side hustles fund your travel?
16:13–28:08
Speakers
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